FiiO is a reputation that is typically stated in the identical sentence as “hi-res audio participant” and “Astell & Kern” – and its newest participant, the FiiO M15S, is well the very best FiiO participant I’ve bought my mitts on.
We coated the M15S when it launched in March, however to recap: it options twin desktop-grade ES9038PRO DACs, help for as much as 384kHz/DSD256 hi-res audio, MQA, Roon, aptX HD, LDAC and LHDC, plus 3.5mm single-ended and a couple of.5mm/4.4mm balanced headphone outputs.
And it does all of it for $999 / £979 / (round AU$1,800), which is only a tad greater than the superb Astell & Kern A&norma SR25 MKII however rather a lot lower than the most recent A&ultima SP3000. Loads. Did I point out that the cosy protecting case, with a reassuringly snappy quantity knob protector, is included?
The M15S Digital Audio Participant (typically shortened to DAP in audiophile circles) builds on the success of earlier award-winning moveable audio tools from FiiO, together with the very proficient FiiO MS11. These twin DACs (one for each the left and proper channel) every use 4 D/A converters, and as you’d hope, the M15S additionally helps recordsdata encoded utilizing MQA, whether or not they’re Tidal Grasp choices or recordsdata in your individual music library.
The M15S is ready to each transmit and obtain hi-res audio due to aptX HD Bluetooth, LDAC, and LHDC wi-fi connectivity – one thing you will not discover on even a number of the finest MP3 gamers (and positively not on my beloved iPod Basic). This two-way connectivity means not solely that wi-fi headphones are coming onboard, however the M15S may also obtain audio from a smartphone, PC or different machine, and it may be used as a Bluetooth DAC/Amplifier.
Oh, and many extra wi-fi audio choices are additionally out there in the event you’re not going the wired headphones route – aptX, aptX LL, aptX Adaptive to call however a couple of – whereas its onboard 2.4GHz/5GHz Wi-Fi permits for Apple AirPlay, DLNA streaming and Roon Prepared connectivity.
Opinion: I nonetheless love Astell & Kern’s brutalist construct high quality, however this factor has energy and panache in spades
Here is the kicker for me: by adopting the twin energy provide possibility discovered on FiiO’s flagship M17 DAP, the M15S operates with out utilizing the inner battery in its desktop mode, which implies it is capable of output 21% extra energy. And that means the Beyerdynamic T5 closed-back cans you see pictured on the high of this text (with their Tilted Tesla drivers) are pushed with ease. I set the quantity at 60 of 120 when listening to Meat Loaf’s Bat Out of Helland I rapidly needed to flip it down. Stunning.
To drill down into this a little bit extra, the M15S can simply be manually adjusted to output 5 ranges of acquire, however when utilizing inner battery energy, ‘low’, ‘medium’, ‘excessive’ or ‘over-ear’ acquire ranges might be chosen. When utilizing exterior USB energy, in desktop mode, the extra ‘enhanced over-ear’ acquire degree turns into out there, delivering a powerful 1200mW per channel. Thus, all however the hardest-to-drive planar magnetic designs will work simply effective right here – and the very best over-ear headphones will mix fortunately with the M15S. My beloved Audeze Euclid? Like a dream.
Additionally trickling down from the agency’s flagship M17 is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 processor, and the M15S runs on the Android 10 working system and contains a world SRC bypass, which means that music streaming apps reminiscent of Tidal, Qobuz, Apple Music and Deezer might be put in to permit listening in full lossless high quality.
Elsewhere, you are getting 10.5 hour battery life, a 5.5-inch multi-touch HD show (which is crisp, clear and has little or no lag), and onboard storage of 64GB. Need a little bit extra room for all these DSD recordsdata? It is all good – the M15S additionally contains a microSD card slot with help for as much as 2TB playing cards.
Android machine homeowners may even really feel at house with this structure over sure different DAPs, the working methods on which may really feel a little bit cluttered or complicated.
Daniel Avery’s Extremely Fact is expansive, nuanced and zealous; Johnny Money’s At Folsom Jail is textured and three dimensional. Radiohead’s The Bends snakes seductively round your mind, by no means overstating Jonny Greenwood’s axe or Thom Yorke’s higher register. I might go on, however one of the best ways to explain the M15S is easy to say it sounds actually good.
